nucmednet Chapter 713 Meeting Gift
Chapter 713 Meeting Gift
"How can you survive in highly toxic oxygen?"
The voice from the communicator remained steady, but Meng Chuan detected a genuine curiosity in that "sense of emptiness."
Just like a biologist encountering a biological specimen they've never seen before, feeling both puzzled and excited.
Meng Chuan and Ying Die exchanged a glance, both seeing surprise in each other's eyes.
What kind of problem is this?
It has long been proven that oxygen is toxic, and anyone with a basic understanding of science knows this.
Iron rusts because of oxidation.
However, oxygen is the cornerstone of human survival, or rather, it is essential for the vast majority of life forms.
But how can this be explained?
Meng Chuan was quickly organizing his thoughts.
Since the other party raised this question, it means that it was not a deliberate provocation.
Rather, it is a blind spot in their civilized "common sense".
To answer this question, we must first make the other party understand the "differences in life forms".
Meng Chuan cleared his throat and spoke into the communicator, trying to explain in a calm tone:
"What you call 'highly toxic' is a 'necessity' for us. This may be related to the environment in which our life originated."
"Origin and environment?"
The voice on the communicator carried a hint of questioning.
"Yes."
Meng Chuan nodded, organizing his thoughts:
"Our home planet, Earth, has an atmosphere containing about 21% oxygen. Our ancestors evolved in this environment for millions of years, and their bodies have long been adapted to the presence of oxygen. Oxygen participates in our body's energy metabolism; without it, we wouldn't survive for more than five minutes."
After a pause, Meng Chuan added:
"Just as you might depend on a gas that we consider 'toxic' to survive, different forms of life naturally have different definitions of 'necessities' and 'highly toxic'."
Since they can ask such a question, it's clear they haven't discovered Earth yet.
However, Meng Chuan didn't care about exposing Earth.
Because, given their speed, if they want to know the location of the Earth, they'll find out sooner or later by following Meng Chuan.
Furthermore, since they believed that oxygen was highly toxic.
This means they cannot tolerate the "poison" of oxygen.
To them, Earth is a toxic planet and a wasteland.
It's not very effective for them.
Therefore, to show sincerity, proactively mentioning Earth can win the other party's favor.
After hearing Meng Chuan's explanation, there was silence on the other end of the communicator.
This silence lasted longer than before, so long that Meng Chuan almost thought the signal had been cut off again.
The light outside the porthole stopped flickering and just hung there quietly, like a piece of solidified moonlight.
Just as Meng Chuan was about to ask another question, the voice rang out again, this time with a clear sense of "sudden realization":
“I see. The differentiation of life forms is caused by ‘environmental adaptability’... All the carbon-based civilizations we have observed before depended on ‘nitrogen-based gases’ for survival. You are the first civilization to depend on ‘oxygen’ for existence.”
Of course, the realization in the voice also carried an even greater curiosity.
However, Meng Chuan did not intend to continue this topic.
It's best to only try things out in moderation.
"Can you tell me your terms now?"
Meng Chuan steered the conversation back to what he was most concerned about.
"The condition is 'sharing'."
The other person's voice was very calm:
“We will share your data on the development of your civilization, your ‘social structure,’ and your understanding of the ‘universe.’ We are ‘observers,’ and the act of ‘recording’ itself is our ‘meaning of existence.’”
Meng Chuan understood.
What they want is not resources or territory, but "information".
Exchanging technology for information sounds like... a worthwhile deal?
“This…we need time to consider it. You should understand that for a civilization, this is not a decision I can make alone.”
Meng Chuan did not agree immediately.
This is also a negotiation technique.
Nothing should be easily obtained by the other party.
Otherwise it would be too cheap.
"can."
The other party readily agreed:
“We will give you a ‘time window’—about one planetary year. That is, the barren planet you previously colonized. During this period, we will no longer interfere with your operations.”
Meng Chuan was taken aback.
One Martian year is equivalent to two Earth years.
Because it takes more than 600 days for a Mars rover to complete one orbit.
"How can I contact you?"
Meng Chuan pressed for an answer.
Two years is enough time for Meng Chuan to think things through and plan carefully.
"To show our 'sincerity,' we will give you a 'gift'."
"Meeting gift?"
Meng Chuan was stunned for a moment.
"Yes." A barely perceptible hint of amusement lingered in the other person's voice.
“We detected that your starships are moving too slowly.”
No sooner had he finished speaking than the hatch next to the control panel suddenly slid open with a "whoosh".
Meng Chuan's starship was easily taken over by the other side.
The hatch opened automatically without any user intervention.
Immediately afterwards, a soft white light peeked in from outside the cabin.
A small ring appeared in front of Meng Chuan.
"This is the controller for the 'messenger-class' quantum spaceship, which can provide 'lowest-level' sub-light-speed travel."
The other party's voice sounded simultaneously:
"The actual vehicle is 7.3 meters long and 2.1 meters wide, requiring only one driver. Its cruising speed is 0.1c, which can be increased to 0.15c for a short time in an emergency. However, this can not be sustained for more than one hour and will consume 30% of the reserve energy."
It was as if she was afraid Meng Chuan wouldn't understand.
The voice kept explaining.
Simply put, c is the speed of light, and 0.1c is 10 percent of the speed of light.
This speed is already quite good.
If Earth and Mars were at their closest possible distance, it would only take about 30 minutes to travel from Earth to Mars.
Even for the longest distance (4 million kilometers), it only takes 3.7 hours.
This is much, much faster than Meng Chuan's starship, which takes more than a month at a time.
These so-called spaceships usually hover outside of space.
Meng Chuan could control it to appear in front of him at any time.
The core power source is a 'miniature curvature resonator'.
Although Meng Chuan couldn't understand what a curvature resonator was, he knew that this spaceship did not rely on nuclear fusion for energy.
Instead, it automatically acquires kinetic energy through resonant space particles.
One energy reserve can support a round trip from Earth to Mars.
It takes about a month to store energy once.
"What about defense and load capacity?"
Meng Chuan asked again, his breathing becoming somewhat rapid.
This thing was a godsend for him.
If used for transportation, it could definitely accelerate the terraforming of Mars.
"It has no active defense, but the fuselage is covered with a 'particle buffer layer' that can withstand impacts from small meteorites, no more than 1 meter in diameter. However, if you are a skilled pilot, you can avoid them in time. It has a state-of-the-art radar early warning system."
The other party's answer was very honest:
"The maximum load capacity is 1 ton, and it can carry 2 additional passengers in addition to the driver. We have also modified the oxygen generation equipment on it to simulate your own, so you can breathe freely on it."
"Also, our contact system is listed here, so you can call us anytime."
Meng Chuan became more and more excited as he listened.
These parameters perfectly matched his needs.
It's sufficient for everything, whether it's urgently transmitting intelligence, transporting key personnel, or carrying out small-scale exploration missions.
"This gift is far too extravagant..."
Meng Chuan's voice was unable to remain calm.
"Because of your 'honesty'."
The other party smiled and said:
“You did not hide the issue of ‘oxygen dependence,’ nor did you grovel because of our ‘technological advantage.’ This ‘rational and honest’ attitude deserves our goodwill.”
Meng Chuan fell silent.
He suddenly realized that these "observers" might be more "pure" than he had imagined.
What they care about is not "exchange of benefits," but "civilized attitude."
"Thank you."
Meng Chuan said earnestly, "We accept this gift. We will give you a clear answer in a year."
"We look forward to your reply."
The other person paused:
"Also, just a heads up—your communication signal has been restored. Your companions... seem quite anxious."